Toe-weight



L: G. CHASE,

(No Model.)

TOE WEIGHT.

No. 259,483. Patented June l3, 1882.

AINVENTUR w WITNESSES NlTED STATES ATENT FFlCE;

LUUIUS O. CHASE, OF BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

TOE-WEIGHT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 259,483, dated June 13, 1882.

Application filed March 30, 1882. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, LUCIUS G. CHASE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Boston, in the county of Suffolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented certain Improvements in Toe-Weights for Horses, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, making part of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a perspective view of a portion of a horses hoof and shoe with my improved toe-weight applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a vertical section through the center of the same. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the toe-weight detached.

My invention relates to an improvement in toe-weights for horses, whereby they are secured in place in such a manner as to prevent them from becoming loosened by the concussion produced by the contact of the foot with the ground, which is a serious objection on account of the rattling thus produced and the liability of their being thrown off by the breaking of the fastening devices; and my invention consists in a toe-weight provided at its lower end with a tang or projection adapted to be introduced between the shoe and the hoof, and held in place by a bolt passing through the shoe from its under side, and having its head countersunk therein, and extending thence up through the tang and body of the weight, and secured by anut at the top of the latter, by which construction the screwthread of the bolt is relieved of the strain and wear to which it has heretofore been subjected when the bolt has been introduced from the top orfrontof the weight, and provided atits lower end with a thread adapted to be screwed into the shoe, or a lug or piece attached to or projecting therefrom, or into a plate or piece secured to the boot, the upsetting, injury, and possible destruction of the threaded portion of the shoe or other attachment which receives the screw-thread of the bolt, (by being battered and by the entrance therein of gravel,) incident to said present construction, when the bolt is removed and the toe-weight not in use, being also thereby avoided.

In the said drawings, A represents a portion of a horses hoof, and B a portion of the shoe.

0 is the toe-weight, which is adapted to lie snugly'against the central portion of the front of the hoof A, and is provided at its lower end with a flat tang or projection,b, which is made in the same piece therewith, and extends out so as to form an acute angle with the inner face, 5, which lies next to the hoof. Between the shoe'B and boot A is formed, by cutting away the hoof or filing the shoe, or otherwise, a recess, 0, within which is introduced the tang b of the weight'O, as seen in Fig. 2, the tang fitting snugly within the recess and extending inward to a sufiieient distance to allow the inner face, 5, of the weight to lie closely against the front of the hoof. At the lower end of the weight 0 is a lug or projection, d, which extends partially overthe shoe, and serves to steady the weight and preventitfrom being bentoutward,besidesforming a neat and ornamental finish at this point. The weight 0 is held securely in place against the boot by a curved bolt, D, which is first passed up through an aperture, 6, in the shoe, then through a corresponding aperture,f, in the tang b, and finally through a curved aperture, g, extending up through the weight 0, the head 6 of the bolt being countersunk in the lower face of the shoe, and its upper end being provided with a screw-thread, over which is fitted a nut, 71, which is turned down tightly onto the upper end, 7, of the weight. As the inclination of the front of hoofs of different horses varies, it is desirable and necessary to adapt the form of the bolt to the character or style of the boot to which it is to be applied. For instance, where the inclination of the front of the hoof forms an acute angle with the plane of the shoe, in order to avoid much or any cutting of the toe of the hoof the bolt D is preferably curved, as shown, to enable it to project through the extreme upper end, 7, of the weight; but where the front of the hoof makes with the plane of the shoe an angle more obtuse than above described a straight bolt may be employed, in which case the upper surface of the weight 0, on which the nut bears, would lie in a plane at right angles to the direction of the bolt; or the nut may be countersunk in a recess formed in the top of rection to the front of the weight may be employed and the tightening-nut be located in a recess in said front; but in this position the appearance of the parts will not be so neat and finished. Consequently where I employ a straight bolt I prefer to have its threaded end extend up above the top of the weight, or to a position accessible from the top, and have the tightening-nut rest thereon or in a recess therein.

The above-described toe-weight is cheap, simple, and reliable, easily attached by an ordinary blacksmith, and when applied will withstand the concussions to which it is subjected without becoming loose or rattling, for the reason that the thread, being located at the top of the bolt, is relieved of the strain and wear which occur when the thread is at the bottom of the bolt and the latter isintroduced from the top or front side of the weight and screwed into the shoe or a piece projecting therefrom, or into a plate or piece secured to the hoof, ashas heretofore been most customary. Furthermore, my weight and its fastening device can be easily detached from the horses foot, leaving nothing but the shoe, without any projecting lugs or other parts of the fastening device.

The boltD is an ordinary tire-bolt, and therefore does not require to be made especially for the purpose, rendering it very cheap and easily obtainable.

The tang or projection 12 receives the greater part of the force of the concussion, and on account of its broad flat surface does not become easily worn, while any wear of the parts which may occur can be readily taken up by tightening the nut h at the upper end of the bolt D.

I am aware of the existence of Patents N os. 17 4,906, 214,610, and 17 4,025 but the constructions therein shown and described are different from that embodied in my present invention.

What I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. The toe-weight 0, provided at its lower end with a tang, 1), adapted to be introduced between the shoe and the hoof, in combination with and held in place by a bolt passing through the shoe from its under side, and having its head countersunk, so that it will be above the lower surface of the shoe, and extending up through the tang and the body of the weight, and secured by a nut, h, applied to a thread at its upper end, and adapted to be screwed down upon or against the weight, substantially in the manner and for the purpose described.

2. The combination, with the shoe B, of the toe-weight U, with its tang or projection b, fitting between the shoe and the hoof, and the curved bolt D, having its head countersunk in the shoe B, and adapted to extend upward through the shoe, tang b, and a curved aperture, g, in the weight 0, and secured at its upper end by a nut, h, screwed down upon the end 7 or bottom of a recess in the weight 0, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

Witness my hand this 24th day of March, A. D. 1882.

P. E. TESGHEMAOHER, W. J. CAMBRIDGE. 

